Posting board for index cabinets



June 6, 1933. c. F. WOLTERS 1,913,319

' POSTING BOARD FOR INDEX CABINETS Filed June 12, 1951 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 (lbbormq s June 6, 1933.

c. F. wo'LTERs POSTING BOARD EQR INDEX CABINETS Filed June 12, 1931 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 June 6, 1933. c. F. WOLTERS POSTING BOARD FOR INDEX CABINETS Filed June 12, 1931 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Carl F WOZtBTS m *Mwy- Patented June 6, 1933 1 UNITED STATE-S PATENT OFFICE n cam. r. woLT'ERs, or MARIE'I'TA, :110, assmnoe TO REMINGTON m INQ, or

BUFFALO, NEW YORK Application filed Iilne 12,

This invention relatestoj posting boards for use on index cabinets, trays,or desks, and similar articles of furniture.

The invention comprehendsthe provision. of a osting board and supportingmeans for atta-c ment to a cabinet, desk or the like for mounting the posting board for free movement thereon and in a convenient position for use in the usual manner. The supportmeans of the invention provide a structure at one end of the posting board for attachingthe posting board to the cabinet, and supporting said posting board for guided movement thereon, while the opposite end of the posting board has attached portions formed for engagement and movement on surfaces of the cabinet, or the covers for compartments where these covers are arranged in a manner to present surfaces inv a position to receive said attached portions irrespective ofwhether they are in open or closed positions. i I a Other features are pointed out in the following description of one embodiment. of the invention, it being understood that various changes may bemade in the [structure and assembly of the parts without departing from thescope of the invention asdefined in the claims. i i i In the drawings:

Fig. 1 shows one form ofledger tray or deskinperspective, and the posting board in operative position, with one of the covers on the tray or desk in open position, and the 5 other cover in closed position.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged cross section through the desk shown in Fig. 1. i

Fig. 3 is an enlarged crosssection through portions of the posting board and tray or desk, showing the supporting structure for attzliching the posting board to'the tray or des i ,Fig. 4 is a fragmentary perspective showing the member carriediby one end of the posting board for movably attaching said posting board to the desk. 1 i

Fig. 5 is across section through the posting board takenon line 55 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary front elevation of one end of the supporting strucs 1931. serial no. 543,929.

turefor attaching theposting board'tothe V desk showing the stop structure for limiting movement of the posting board.

The invention is shownas applied to a construction generally known as a ledger desk. The desk illustrated has a body portion 10 formed with front and rear walls 11 and 12 respectively, bottom wall 13,and end walls connecting the front and rear walls and the bottom wall and forming an upwardly opening compartment in the body. This" body-is supported above afloor surface by suitable legs 14: and as shown in Figs. 1 and 2 is an insulated fire resistant type of constructionto rovide protection for the contents against re for thecompart ments therein-formed a central transverse partition wall. The compartments in the ody are closed at the upper endjby two covers 15 and l6respeetively'. The cover 15 is shown in closed position in Figs. 1 and 2, and. the cover 16 is illustrated in. its open position in full lines in Figi land in dot and dash lines in Fig. 2. The marginal er: tions of'the covers15' and 16 and the front and rear walls 11 and 12 respectively, to-j. gether with the end walls of thebody 10. and the partition wall have complementary portions on the upper margins forysealing cooperation with the coverswhen they are in closed position as shown in Fig. 2 at 17 in connection with the cover 15, toeifectively seal thecontents of the compartments against the effects of heat external. thereto.

the parts in this position thearms 19 on 1 each cover will support the cover in the open position acent the front wall 11 of the body in the manner shown inconnectionwith the cover 16 in Fig. 1. Either of the covers in the open position will have its rear edge supported in a position adjacent the front edge of the closed cover so that the rear edge of the open cover and the upper marginal portion at the front edges of the closed cover, will be in adjacent relation so as to cooperate in forming a substantially continuous tracking surface atthe front portion of the body extending from end to end thereof,for a purpose to be described.

The body and cover structure, and. the manner in which it is supported and operated into open and closed positions, .is more fully described in applicants co-pending application Serial No. 426,679, filed February 7th, 1930.

A posting board 22 is movably connected to and supported by, a supporting member 23 attached to the rear wall 12 of body portion along the upper edge. This supporting member 23 is formed of an elongated bar of channel shape in cross section having a central section 24 and upper and lower laterally extending flanges 25 and 26 respectively.

' The free edges of the flanges 25 and 26 are provided with flanges 27 and 28, respectively, extending toward each other. The lower flange 26 is seated on the upper edge of rear wall 12 and suitably secured thereto by bolts 29. This supporting member 23 is coex-. tensive with the rear wall 12 as shown in Fig. 1 and the central section 24 is positioned toward the rear ofbody 10 while upper flange 25 and flange 27 cooperate with the upper portion of central section 24 to form a trackway within the supporting member. A track member 30 of angular form in cross section is suitably secured to. central section 24 ofsupporting member 23 and has a track portion 31 in spaced parallel relation to flange 25 and an angularly extending track portion 32 extending toward flange 27; but terminat ing in spaced relation thereto and cooperating with central section 24 and track portion 31to; form a trackway opposed to and cooperating with the trackway formed by flanges 25. and27 ofthe. supporting member. The supporting member includes a sheet metal cover 33 embracing and enclosing theouter faces of central section 24, upperflange25 and flange 27 respectively. A cover plate 34 .closes the openingbelow track member 30 and covers the outer face of track portion 32and flange 28 as shown in Fig. 3, so that only'the slot between the ends of track portion 32 and flange 27 is left uncovered. The cover'33 and coverv plate 34 facilitates the application of a suitable finish to the exterior surfaces of the supportingv member to correspond with the finish on the body 10.

The posting board 22 is formed of a sheet metal plate 35 having depending flanges 36 on the side and rear edges as shown in Figs. 3. and The top surfaceof plate 35 .is covered with a layer of suitable composition material 37 suitably secured to the surface of the plate, and an edge binding strip 38 embraces the marginal flanges 36 and the edge portions of the covering material 37. A binding member 40 is secured to the front edge of plate 35 to form a binding along the front edge of the posting board for the covering material 37 andis of substantially semi-circular form in cross section to provide a rolled edge and handgripv at the front end of the posting board;

A supporting bracket for the posting board is indicated at 41 having angularly arranged plate portions42-and 43 respectively connected at the side edges by connecting flanges 44. Plate portion 43 is secured to the under side of plate member 35 of the posting board at the rear end as shown in Fig. 3, while plate portion 42 extends downwardly therefrom and is arranged in spaced parallel relation adjacent to the front face of supporting member 23. The plate section 42 is formed with lateral projections 45 at the sides and in the central portion thereof between the upper and lower edges. These lateral projections 45. extend through the slot formed between depending flange 27 on supporting member 23 and track portion 32, and are arranged in parallel relation to flange 25 of member 23 as shown in Fig. 3. The outer edges of the lateralprojections 45 are provided with depending stop lugs 46 while a roller 47 is mounted on each projection 45 and arranged in the trackway formed by traekmember 30 for rolling engagement with track portion 32 and central section 24 of supporting member 23 to provide a lateral support and guide for the posting board and supporting bracket 41 in cooperation with supporting member 23. A pair of laterally projecting studs 48 are mounted on plate section 42 in substantial alignment with lateral projections 45 and inwardly thereof, but adjacent to the projections 45 as is shown in Fig. 4. Supporting rollers 49 are journ alled on these studs 48 within supporting member 23 and arranged between flange 25 of the supporting member and track portion 31, so as to have rolling engagement with the track section 31 to provide the main bearing and support for the posting board and supporting bracket 41. The'studs 48 project through the slot between track portion 32 and flange 27 in the manner illustrated in Fig. 3.

This connection between supporting bracket 41 and supporting member 23 provided by the construction of the supporting bracket and the rollers 47 and 49, connects the posting board to the body portion 10 for support thereon in a position freely movable over the body portionin supported relation from end to end thereof.

Stop lugs 46vare adapted to engage with bumpers 50 of rubber, or the like, located at the ends of track member 30, as shown in Fig. 6, and retained in position by securing the housing 51 forthe bumper 5O to'the track section 31 as illustrated. a r

A collapsible supporting bracket is mounted at the front end of the posting board. This bracket has a rear wall 53, a

wall 54 parallel thereto, and wall portions 55 extending'from wall 54 to meet the wall D, 53 at its upper end. End walls 56 at each end of the supporting bracket connect wall 53 to walls 54 and 55, and cooperate to form ahinge member 58 is secured to the upper end portion of wall 53. Hinge knuckles 59 on hinge member 58 are arranged to receive a coil spring 62 in alignment therewith, having one end engaged with hinge member 58 and the other end engagedwith hinge mem opened covers, the front edges of closed her 64 and retainedin pivotal relation with hingemember 58 by hinge pin 63 extending through knuckles 59, coil spring 62, and the hinge knuckles of hinge member 64. Hinge member 64 is secured to plate member 35 and mounts the supporting bracket for hinging movement. This bracket is normally and resiliently held in the position shown in Fig.

2, with stopmember 57engaging theunder side of plate member 35. In this positionof the collapsible bracket, "the peripheries of rollers 65 will engage on the tracking surface provided by the frontedgeportion of a closed cover such as the cover 15 as shown in Fig. 2, or the reduced peripheral portion of rollers 65 will engage on the tracking surface provided by the rear edge of an open cover as indicated at 67 in Fig. 2. This will support the front end of posting board 22 for free movement between the ends of body portion 10 along the substantiallycontinuous track ing surfaces formed by the rear edges of covers, or the rear edge of one open cover and the front edge of a closed cover, 1n the manner indicated in Fig. 2.

The movement of the posting board 22 on body portion 10 is at all. times directly supported and guided by the roller connection between the main supporting bracket 41 and supporting member 23, and the collapsible supporting bracket provides a supplemental supporting and guiding means for the front end of the posting board.

The collapsible supporting bracket is provided for the purpose of preventing damage to the posting board structure through the inadvertent closing movement of an open cover when the posting board is positioned over the portion of the body 10 that is open and when rollers 65 are engaged with the rear edge of the open cover. In the case of such an inadvertent movement of an open cover toward closed position, with the postof, the collapsible bracket will be caused to move about its hinge by the movement of the coveragainst the tension of spring 62 so that it will fold under posting board 22, or

ing board supported on the rear edge there move in a clockwise direction aboutits hinged mounting as shown in Fig. 2. When this occurs, the lower end portion of plate portion42 of main supporting bracket 41will engage the outer front face of supporting member 23 and rollers 47 will engage track portion 32, and through this cooperation effectively support the posting board during the closing movement of the cover with the collapsible bracket folded under the postmg board in the manner above described, out

of its normal positionfor supporting one end of the posting board. If desired, and in order toprevent scratching of the fin sh on the top surface of the cover durin g closing move- It is intended *to have the posting board ment, a pair of rollers 68 may be mounted moved to one s de of an open cover onto another cover when closing an open cover, so that this operation of the collapsible bracket will be unnecessary.

3 From the above description it willbe clearly understood that the invention provides a posting board structure and mounting for attachment to a ledger desk or other similar article of furniture in wh ch the supporting member 23 secures the posting board to the desk and supports and guides its movement on the desk at one end with the supporting bracket at the opposite end riding on the surface of the covers for the desk.

The invention claimed is:

1. The combination with a cabinet hav ng a normally closed cover movable to an open position, said. cover having tracking surfaces along opposite marginal portions thereof. of a posting board, and means on the cabinet for supporting a portion of the posting board for movement substantially parallel to the tracking surfaces, said posting board being movable upon said means andupon either of said tracking surfaces depending whether the cover is in open or closed position.

2. A cabinet having in combinatiorua compartment, a cover member for the compartment, track means mounted on the cabinet, a posting board, a pair of spaced brackets mounted on the posting board, means on one bracket slidably engaging in the track means for guided movement and means on the remaining bracket engaging the cover member for movement thereon.

3. A cabinet having a combination track means mounted thereon, a posting board having a bracket, a set of rollers mounted on said bracket and engaged in said track means and a second set of rollers mounted on said bracket and having their axes arranged in angular relation to the axes of the first set of rollers and engaging said track means.

4. A cabinet, having in combination, a supporting member thereon formed to provide track means, a posting board having a supporting bracket, a set of aligned rollers mounted on said bracket, a second set of aligned rollers mounted on said bracket and having their axes in angular relation to the axes of the first set of rollers, and means associated with said track means for independently retaining each set of rollers for movement therein.

5. A cabinet, having in combination a supporting member formed to provide track means, a posting board, bracket mounted on the posting board, means on the bracket engaging said track means for guided movement, a second bracket spaced from said first bracket and mounted on said posting board for pivotal movement, and resilient means for normally retaining said second bracket in fixed angular relation to the posting board to movably enga e surface portions of the cabinet.

6. In a filing cabinet wherein the body thereof is provided with a compartment and a plurality of cover members, each'movable from a substantially horizontal covering position toan open substantially vertical position, with edge portions of open covers being substantially contiguous in end to end relation With marginal portions of unopened covers to form substantially continuous tracking surfaces along one edge of said cabinet; the combination of a posting board, supporting brackets mounted at the ends of said posting board, a supporting member mounted on the other edge of the cabinet and movably mounting said posting board thereon and the other bracket having bearing engagement With the tracking surfaces provided by said covers in open and closed positions.

7. A ledger desk having a pair of covers, each movable into open and closed positions and having tracking surfaces on opposite marginal portions, one of said tracking surfaces on each cover having cooperation with either of said tracking surfaces on the other cover to form a substantially continuous tracking surface along one edge of said desk, and a posting board movably mounted on said desk said posting board being provided with means for engaging and movably supporting said posting board on said substantially continuous tracking surface.

8. A cabinet having in combination a supporting member having track means, a posting board, a bracket mounted on one end of said posting board movablyengaging and guided by said track means, a second bracket pivotally mounted at the opposite end of said posting board and movably supported by marginal surfaces of the cabinet, a stop member on the second bracket normally abutting the posting board for limiting movement of said bracket in one direction, and resilient means for retaining said stop member at its limit of movement controlled by the stop member.

9. In a filing cabinet having a compartment adapted to be covered by a cover member movable from a horizontal covering position to an open substantially vertical position, the combination of a movable posting board having a top bridging the compartment of said cabinet, means movably mounting the posting board at one side of said cabinet, and means on the other end of said posting board for engaging portions of said cover, means for suspending said cover for movement from a horizontal to a vertical position Within the contact area of said lastnamed means, whereby said last-named means engages a marginal portion of the cover in closed position thereof, and an edge portion of the cover in open position thereof, thereby providing a support for said posting board on said cover irrespective of Whether said cover is in open or closed position.

CARL F. WOLTERS. 

